The Patient Advocate Program (PAF) serves patients with chronic, life threatening or debilitating diseases by providing direct financial support as well as case management support. Alan Balch, PhD, chief executive officer, PAF, explained that PAF guides their members through insurance systems when issues of access or affordability arise for the individual.
The Patient Advocate Program (PAF) serves patients with chronic, life threatening or debilitating diseases by providing direct financial support as well as case management support. Alan Balch, PhD, chief executive officer, PAF, explained that PAF guides their members through insurance systems when issues of access or affordability arise for the individual.
“We average on behalf of the patient about 20 contacts per case with or on behalf of the patient so it’s a very intense engagement with the patient,” Dr. Balch said. “We work directly with them in the process; we don’t give them a list of resources and say ‘Go help yourself.’ We actually get on the phone with the insurance company and try to advocate on their behalf to navigate through prioritization issues or coverage denial issues.”
Dr. Balch said that PAF concentrates a majority of their work on cancer patients, as there is an acute need for insurance access and financial support; however, PAF provides guidance and support to 300 different disease areas.
The Joint Commission is launching the Rural Health Clinic Accreditation Program to standardize staff training and patient care practices at rural health clinics nationwide; the American Cancer Society recently launched the largest-ever study of cancer risk and outcomes in Black women; the HHS COVID-19 vaccination campaign saved $732 billion by preventing illness and related costs.
Read More
Examining Low-Value Cancer Care Trends Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 25th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the April 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on the rates of low-value cancer care services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Listen
Oncology Onward: A Conversation With Penn Medicine's Dr Justin Bekelman
December 19th 2023Justin Bekelman, MD, director of the Penn Center for Cancer Care Innovation, sat with our hosts Emeline Aviki, MD, MBA, and Stephen Schleicher, MD, MBA, for our final episode of 2023 to discuss the importance of collaboration between academic medicine and community oncology and testing innovative cancer care delivery in these settings.
Listen
AUA Session Highlights the General Urologist’s Role in Gender-Affirming Care
May 7th 2024During her session, Polina Reyblat, MD, Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center, highlighted best practices urologists should incorporate to make transgender and gender-diverse patients comfortable during physical exams and avoid retraumatization.
Read More
The Joint Commission is launching the Rural Health Clinic Accreditation Program to standardize staff training and patient care practices at rural health clinics nationwide; the American Cancer Society recently launched the largest-ever study of cancer risk and outcomes in Black women; the HHS COVID-19 vaccination campaign saved $732 billion by preventing illness and related costs.
Read More
Examining Low-Value Cancer Care Trends Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 25th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the April 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on the rates of low-value cancer care services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Listen
Oncology Onward: A Conversation With Penn Medicine's Dr Justin Bekelman
December 19th 2023Justin Bekelman, MD, director of the Penn Center for Cancer Care Innovation, sat with our hosts Emeline Aviki, MD, MBA, and Stephen Schleicher, MD, MBA, for our final episode of 2023 to discuss the importance of collaboration between academic medicine and community oncology and testing innovative cancer care delivery in these settings.
Listen
AUA Session Highlights the General Urologist’s Role in Gender-Affirming Care
May 7th 2024During her session, Polina Reyblat, MD, Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center, highlighted best practices urologists should incorporate to make transgender and gender-diverse patients comfortable during physical exams and avoid retraumatization.
Read More
2 Commerce Drive
Cranbury, NJ 08512